Chapter 7: A Made-Up Story
Evelia Croyelle.
If someone went to the town listed as her hometown and asked the locals about her, they would probably say Evelia was a good girl. Well-mannered, motivated, pure, and kind.
But the truth is, Evelia Croyelle doesn’t even exist.
She didn’t steal someone else’s identity, she was simply made up out of thin air.
According to the people there, she was a gentle girl. Her parents’ graves were said to be under a big tree on the nearby hill. She liked making flower crowns for kids and sitting alone on the steps of her house watching the sunset.
Of course, none of that is real. It's all just a made-up character, like one from a novel. Every part of her story is fiction.
And it's easy to make up a story like that. You just need to create a character who is as normal and good as possible.
Once they picked a town, they found a few chatty women who liked gossiping about neighbors and told them.
“I’m looking for someone. Do you remember a pink-haired girl who used to live here? Her name was Evelia Croyelle.”
“Huh? Did we ever have a girl like that here?”
Naturally, the women would be confused, because that girl never existed.
“Wait, maybe we did? I think there was a pink-haired girl once. You said her hair was pretty back then, didn’t you?”
The Second Prince’s spies were everywhere. In a small town like this, even a random vendor might work for him. That’s when they came in handy. Once a familiar face stepped up to confirm that “Evelia” had lived there, the story began to take shape.
“Oh? Is that so? I do like the color pink…”
The woman would hesitate, and someone would continue the conversation to push it along.
“She was really pretty too. I remember one summer she helped that old man at the end of the street hang his blankets out to dry.”
“Hmm? Oh—yeah, that does sound familiar. What was that girl’s name again?”
“Evelia. Evelia Croyelle.”
“Ah, right, Evelia. Pretty name, pretty girl.”
“Haven’t seen her in a while. Did she move?”
“Maybe she went to the city. Young people don’t like staying in little towns like this. Only us old ladies stick around.”
“Hey, we’re not that old yet!”
With just a bit of small talk and guidance from someone planted nearby, a fake person slowly became “real.” Evelia Croyelle, the sweet and kind-hearted girl, was born from their chatter.
Everything else was taken care of too. Fake documents showing she had been there, even a gravestone under that random tree on the hill, marked as her “parents’” grave. If someone walked by, they might nod and say, “Oh, this is Evelia’s parents’ grave. So she really did live here.”
But it was all fake. Her past, her face, her name. Even the person she was now didn’t truly exist. Evelia was just a character created by the Second Prince. And even her life was in his hands. If he ever wanted to end her story, he only needed to cross out her name.
“Thank you for the snacks, Miss Evelia,”
A young knight said her name with a smile, happily picking up a cookie with chocolate chips and taking a big bite.
“You’re welcome. These are actually new recipes. Since we have a new master now, we’re trying to figure out what he likes. So I’m counting on all of you to try them for us.”
“Snacks, huh…” another knight nearby held a strawberry tart and looked thoughtful. “I don’t think I’ve seen the Captain eat snacks before.”
“He doesn’t like them?”
Evelia held the tray and began guessing what Armand might like. Judging by his easy-going personality, she thought he probably did like sweets.
“It’s more like he doesn’t seem to enjoy eating anything at all.”
“Yeah, whenever we go out for a party or have a celebration after returning from a mission, I rarely see the Captain use his fork or spoon. He just keeps drinking that cheap beer he buys from outside. Actually, I guess he does like something, he really loves that watered-down beer.”
“But honestly, that kind of beer tastes pretty good, especially when you need to drink a lot. It’s light but still hits the spot.”
The two knights chatted casually while eating desserts, mumbling about their Captain’s strange habits.
“I remember hearing he has stomach problems, so he doesn’t eat a lot of heavy food like meat or fish,” the knight holding a strawberry tart wiped his mouth and looked up, trying to remember. “At those big feasts, he usually doesn’t eat much, but he really seems to like fried snacks and cold dishes that go well with alcohol. I’ve seen him bring his own snacks to parties more than once.”
“I feel like that kind of stuff is even worse for a bad stomach… But I have seen him carry a small bottle of medicine with him. He says it’s for his stomach. He pops those pills like they’re peanuts, just tosses one in his mouth anytime.”
As he said this, the knight even copied Armand’s old habit, picking a chocolate chip off the dessert and tossing it coolly into his mouth.
“Honestly, all of us soldiers have some health issues. During a campaign, if our supply lines get cut off, we end up eating tree bark or worse, who wouldn’t get sick from that? And then there’s all kinds of stuff like arthritis or joint pain. None of us can avoid it. Oh yeah, and sore throats. I shouted so much training the new recruits that my throat’s still killing me. Sounds like a small thing, but it really sucks when you’re the one suffering.”
“If your throat hurts, give me your strawberry tart then—hey! You really ate it that fast!”
Even though he said his throat hurt, the knight still stuffed the remaining half of the tart into his mouth before his friend could stop him, like he already knew what the other was planning to do.
“So, what should we prepare for the dinner tonight? It’s our first time setting up a meal for the new master. I don’t want him to be unhappy with what we make.”
Evelia frowned slightly. She had thought Armand was an easygoing guy, but now he was sounding kind of hard to please.
“He won’t be unhappy. As long as you prepare everything seriously, he’ll definitely be happy. I’ve barely ever seen the Captain get mad or annoyed outside of battle. You’ve seen it too, he’s pretty chill, right?”
“I just hope I don’t have to be on the same squad as the Captain again in battle… Ugh, I feel like I’m gonna throw up the strawberry… It’s like someone’s eyeball popping out…”
The moment the word battle came up, the knight who had just eaten the strawberry turned pale, like he had remembered something really gross. He clutched his mouth and twitched his eyebrows in discomfort.
“Come on… don’t say that stuff now. Miss Evelia’s still here. What’s she going to think of our Captain if you talk like that…”
The other knight also looked uncomfortable. He glanced at the strawberry jam still smeared on his friend’s mouth and looked like he wanted to complain too, but when he saw Evelia was still just a young woman, he decided not to say anything about the nasty things they had seen on the battlefield.
“Does the master often get angry during battles?” Evelia raised an eyebrow, suddenly feeling like she had seen a different side of Armand.
“Not exactly angry… How do I explain it? You know that smile of his, the one that looks totally carefree?”
“Yeah… I’ve seen it.”
In fact, Evelia always felt like that bright, sunny smile of his was so dazzling she could barely keep her eyes open.
“Well, the thing is… he always smiles like that, no matter what. You don’t really notice it when things are normal. But… can you imagine him smiling the same way on a battlefield, with dead bodies everywhere, and even a head stuck on his sword?”
“……”
Evelia froze. For some reason, that blurry image gave her chills.
“It’s really not that scary, Miss Evelia. He might be smiling, but don’t imagine it too dark or awful—” one knight said quickly, elbowing the other, “Hey, look what you’re saying! You’re gonna freak her out!”
“Sigh… The Captain’s just too unpredictable. It’s hard to understand him. But Miss Evelia, he really is a good person. Just treat him the same as any other master. He’s not picky at all… Damn, I really don’t want to remember all that stuff again…”
The knight gave Evelia a sincere pat on the shoulder as if giving her some serious advice, then sighed and walked away, mumbling to himself. The other knight nodded in agreement, thanked Evelia for the sweets, and went off with him to clear their heads.
“……”
Evelia watched the two knights walk away. At first, her face was calm, but as she thought more about what they had said, more and more questions started to form in her mind.
Armand… didn’t seem as simple and cheerful as he looked on the outside. But at the same time, he didn’t seem like he was hiding anything either.
That carefree attitude of his felt like something that came from deep inside. Could it be that he was so numb that he couldn’t even act serious, even on a battlefield?
Evelia silently stared out toward the garden, still holding her tray, and headed toward the next group of knights.
What a strange man…